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Charging of Drug Dealers

Recently, deaths due to drug overdose have increased overwhelmingly. Drugs such as

opioids have off-late led to several deaths. The negative impact of drugs on the lives of people

has made various states such as Florida to pass laws that charge drug dealers with murder in case

of death caused by an overdose. Although this move may appeal to some people, it is an unfair

move. For instance, the enforcement of the laws is a result of a knee-jerk reaction to prevent

overdose deaths, and it may result in arbitrary arrest or even mass incarceration. The situation

surrounding the formation and practice of these laws raises the question: should drug dealers be

charged with murder?

One of the main reasons to oppose laws charging drug dealers with murder is that they

are as a result of a knee-jerk reaction to overdose deaths. These laws came by after some people

felt the fatality of death, especially of a close family member. For instance, after losing his son,

Dean Palozej suggested that drug dealers should be subjects to incarceration for a long time. His

opinion made a state representative join hands with other lawmakers to push for laws that would

charge drug dealers with the murder of the victims of drugs overdose (Collins, 2019, n.p). From

this stand, it is clear that these laws were passed for the need for vengeance rather than the need

to protect potential victims of drug trafficking.

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Besides, laws charging drug dealers with murder may lead to arbitrary and mass

incarceration. For example, Sakers was accused of the killing of Moreland in December 2007

(Ortega, 2018, n.p). During her trial, no document detailing the alleged crime was presented. Her

suit was thus not the fairest one as judgement occurred despite the absence of a comprehensive

piece of evidence. Apart from arbitrary arrest, mass incarceration is another issue that may arise

from such laws. In 2017, Baker introduced a bill from the Opioid and Heroin Study Task Force

which would penalize not only the drug dealers but also their family members (Liu, 2019, n.p).

Such a law is unfair as it may result in the incarceration of people not involved with the drug

business. Currently, drug laws criminalize any person possessing drugs even for personal use.

These laws account for more than a million arrests per year (Drug Policy Alliance, 2017, p.9).

Lawmakers are however working towards tweaking these laws and end the incarceration of

individuals drugs for personal use.

Although the laws pushing for incarceration of drug dealers upon the death of a user are

somewhat unfair, the may be of a positive impact in checking the spread of drugs. It is true that

drug dealers are the primary cause of deaths of some drug users and thus they should be charged

for committing homicide. The main reason for this argument is that were they not there to

provide drugs; the victimized individual would not have found a drug to overdose. Charging

drug dealers may thus be a move towards achieving a drug-free state.

In conclusion, lawmakers should not entirely lean towards the laws that charge drug

dealers with murder to control the spread and usage of drugs. These laws should be tweaked to

allow for rightful incarceration and mass criminalization of innocent people who are close to the

drug dealers. Although imprisonment of drug dealers is vital in preventing drug usage, their

detention should be upon the availability of concrete evidence.

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Works Cited
Collins, Dave. "Should Drug Dealers Be Charged with Murder? States Ponder." AP NEWS,

25 Feb. 2019, www.apnews.com/a5deb83c79974ff3a40188043e5a6931. Accessed

29 Mar. 2019.

Drug Policy Alliance. Raising the stakes. 2017.

www.drugpolicy.org/sites/default/files/DPA_Annual-Report_FY17.pdf.

Liu, Michelle. "'Parker's Law' Would Put Drug Dealers Behind Bars for Overdose

Deaths." Mississippi Today, 8 Feb. 2019, mississippitoday.org/2019/02/04/parkers-law-

would-charge-dealers-friends-for-drug-overdose-deaths/. Accessed 29 Mar. 2019.

Ortega, Juan. "Drug Dealer First to Be Accused of Murder Under New Law, Prosecutor

Says." Sun-Sentinel.com, 5 Oct. 2018, www.sun-sentinel.com/local/palm-beach/fl-ne-

drug-deal-murder-20181005-story.html. Accessed 29 Mar. 2019.